I can’t wait until November to see this movie, the trailer looks fantastic and the storyline is somewhat refreshing. All I remember is watching and loving this anime from back in the 80s, its even before I knew I was watching anime. They have done an excellent job in preserving the feel of Astro Boy since they put it in this retro looking future, and this trailer is a little longer so now I’m even more excited to see it.
Plot Summary: Preparing for the battles to come, tournaments and to fight against new opponents from over the world, Hakufu is working to have enough money to make her dream true. But she doesn’t consider that old and new allies and enemies will come to scene, and also being a weak leader to the eyes of her companions. A sister also appears. She doesn’t even know her mom’s past so better to start from the local stuff before attempting to go worldwide.
Ikkitousen is one of those martial arts Anime that I really enjoy, Great Guardians was the third iteration of this series and I really wasn’t sure to expect. All these students still represent the reincarnations of warrior spirits from the past with predetermined destinies, and who knows how that will come to be. The best part of the was that their was a lot of fighting scenes to go around, with a very complex storyline that unwinds into a simple idea. The only part which I found a little funny, is that this anime series always was skimming the line of nudity but this time around they crossed it and went for somethign that was a little more frisky then usual. Overall I enjoyed the anime and storyline, I just hope this isn’t the end of the Ikkitousen series.
Link: AnimeNewsNetwork
Rating:
I have been neglecting Anime for about 4 weeks now and this is the result, about 116 GB of data that I missed to get as well as episodes I was following. It was after that business trip that I started archiving some shows that I wanted and expanding the material and media on WHS that I put Anime on the back burner thinking I would get to it later. A week turned into two, then that into a month and then realizing that I had so much to download it would be enormous if I didn’t start now. So one evening I went through about nine to ten pages from the torrent site which added up to more then 270 torrents that I to sift through and choose which ones I’m downloading and which I am skipping. Some were new shows, some were current shows and some were old shows released in high definition which I had to have to watch later. At this point I really have no clue where to start with a new anime, I keep getting excited when I find a new anime to watch which is interesting but then I get lost, not knowing what to choose next.
How cool is that, they are making Anime versions of Wolverine and Ironman. I honestly think that Anime is a lot more complex and artist then all kinds of western animation and now so does Marvel. And based on the previews in the youtube trailers I think they look pretty damn good. They have added a much needed darker appeal to these characters and it will be released in spring of 2010. Looks like Madhouse did an amazing job with these anime adaptations just based on the trailers of Ironman and Wolverine, I really can’t wait to see this.
Ironman. The dogfights look amazing and as expected from Madhouse the animation quality is top notch. Ironman himself though… I can see how they wanted him to look more like a shiny mecha but all I can think about is that someone took an Ironman sketch and applied the Plastic Wrap effect in Photoshop to it. The villian though, that’s a whole other story! He’s part Captain Harlock, part The Major from Hellsing and all kinds of awesome.
Wolverine really hit close to home. I’ve never been a Wolverine fan but this reimagining of the character as a Japanese badass is an instant hit. The mood is a lot grittier and thicker than the american version and will remind you a lot of classic samurai anime films, specially Ninja Scroll.
Link: DarkDaimond
I have gotten more and more involved with the models over the past year, I recently got my hands on a Gundam Astray which isn’t easy to find since its very much in demand. I have never built such a complex model before, the most complex build of any type were my Tamiya cars or Lego Technic, but this one was easily over 500 pieces. Its a Perfect Grade class Gundam meaning a full articulate body with every movable joint possible including the fingers to make fists or open palms.
When I first started this a while back I chose a location with the least amount of people to see it spread out all over the floor. The instructions were in Japanese but my hat goes off to them for giving excellent instructions on how to build it, luckily I had the right type of scissors to cut the plastic to make for a perfect fit, and I had my Leatherman Skeletool to intervene when needed. This took over 6 days to put together and careful planning, there were a few screw ups along the way but I managed to back track my mistakes and fix it. I am very happy with this very large model which stands clear at 33 centimeters high from head to toe. I think I am addicted to having these models and building them to perfection, I have a few more models that I have bought but kept aside to build later but non as complex as this, but there are a few Perfect Grade Gundams that I am bidding for on Ebay and crossing my fingers. I just can’t seem to get enough, I’m running out of shelving at this rate, and he is standing on my Sonos unit.
Plot Summary: In the night of Tokyo, mysterious deaths involving the ‘Reborn Dead’ occur. Mysterious transfer student, Tatsuma Hiyuu, and delinquent student, Kyouichi Houraiji, fight these undead every night. They, along with the rest of their group, soon realize that a greater threat, that involves even more powerful demons, is near.
This is the second season of Tokyo Majin and I was a bit disappointed, I was expecting a lot after the first one. Tatsuma’s powers have started to show and the group will come together to fight an evil they never seen before, but it takes all their strength to stay together and pull through against the enemy. They do all feel like all friends but still the storyline just doesn’t feel complete and you feel unsatisfied with the ending, such a build up but not the peak performance I was expecting but the action scenes were pretty good and I like the character development.
Link: AnimeNewsNetwork
Rating:
The Japanese have honestly taken it to another level, I thought their Gundam was a stationary statue. I didn’t think it would be movable and they would play the music in the background. One way or another I have to get to Japan and see that robot in front of my eyes.
At 60 feet tall and weighing in at 50 tons the Japanese will be building another robot. Tetsujin or Gigantor as some may know him will be built by October of this year. I just hope they don’t take down this robot, I hope this trend continues in Japan that all the parks will have a monument of a Giant robot built in it, everyone knew the Japanese would be the first to build robot warriors and this is the first step forward.
Link: Gizmodo
I always look for unique models, toys, and figures which I can add to my collection. Recently in Singapore I came across this store which had the original Takara Transformers from the 1980s show made in Japan, I was shocked and happy, I couldn’t believe that I have found what I have been looking for right in front of my eyes. The Takara models were still in their boxes and in perfect condition, these are not just models but an art form. So much detail and beauty I couldn’t resist getting both the Optimus Prine & Convoy, and Ultra Magnus, he had another Ultra Magnus which was on display in the case but not for sale, it was his own and he didn’t even let me touch it, I couldn’t blame him. And bought both of them right away, he said that he also had the original Starscream and Megatron who also transform but it was too high a price so I thought these two would be perfect before going to watch Transformers 2: Revenge of the Fallen.
The Red Gundam Fix Metal Composite was the first Gundam I put together, then there was the Blue one which remained in the box for a couple of weeks since I didn’t have enough time to get around to it or the right place to place it. These models or objects of art need right placement before being put together, I honestly don’t want to work on one unless I have the right spot for it and after looking around my room I found the right spot.
I decided to place the Blue Gundam on top of my desk shelving wear Bumble Bee was previously. This specific Gundam comes in multiple configurations, two robot mode, in regular form which I built the first one or the armored mode which is down right scary. Then there is the plane mode which also has a normal and armored mode. I decided to go with the semi-normal plane mode because it looked really cool in the box.
Now I just need two more of these models to build the other variations of it and I have to say that I would never be satisfied. I need some shelving to present these works of art, I am just happy looking at them wondering how ingenious the Japanese are in their creative ideas and how soon will we have life size robots such as these. I want to thank my very thoughtful friend who bought this for me as a gift.
